Posts Tagged ‘3D programming’

Sky 3D review: Worth the money?

Sky 3D doesn’t actually cost you anything – provided you are already a Sky World HD subscriber with a Sky+HD set top box. And obviously you’ll also need a 3D TV. So, having spent a weekend with Sky 3D, do we think it’s worth the investment? Read on for this section of our Sky 3D review and we’ll tell you, whether you’ve cleared those rather large price obstacles or not already.

We thought the best way to break down this part of the Sky 3D review is to go through the various scenarios, offering a separate verdict for each. Read more…

Sky launches Europe’s first 3D TV channel in the UK

Sky 3D will broadcast for 14 hours every day from around 9am and will show a selection of programmes including premier league football, and films.

At this year’s Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas all the big names unveiled new 3D products and was billed by some as a saviour for TV firms.

A monthly subscription fee will be £61 with the cost of an average 3D television around £2,000.

Subscribers who pay for the top Sky World HD package will be able to get the service free.
‘Seeing is believing’

Since the launch of James Cameron’s 3D movie film Avatar late last year, 3D has been in the news like never before.

Most cinemas have at least one 3D film on show all the time, while the launch of this new channel will let people experience it at home for the first time.

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In depth: ‘We’re good but we need to be great’ says Sony Pictures 3D guru Buzz Hays

Buzz Hays has many handles. His current preferred one is Executive stereoscopic 3D producer. He’s also the senior vice president of the Sony 3D Technology Center, out of the Sony Pictures’ facility in Culver City. He and his Hollywood team held 3D workshops for the UK broadcast industry at the BBC television Centre in West London. Between the various demonstrations of 3D footage (delivered using the class-leading, jaw-dropping Sony SRXR320 4K digital projector), and hands-on practical shooting sessions, HCC pulled Buzz aside to talk over some of the hotter topics boiling up around 3D technology…

‘We’re good but we need to be great’
Buzz Hays is a convincing evangelist for 3D but concedes that 3D, both in the home and in the cinema, is not yet perfect, and that not all movies lend themselves to the format. ‘It’s just that it’s happened so much faster than people expected originally,’ he says. ‘The floodgates opened quickly, so we now have a little bit of catch-up to do. The 3D systems out there are good – it’s just that they need to be great. We’ll get there sooner or later.’

Hays agrees 3D isn’t suitable for everything. ‘There was one big movie,’ he reveals, ‘which I won’t name but consisted of a lot of people running around – it was to be all shot on handycams. They asked me for some advice on shooting it in 3D. I told them if you don’t want to change the style of the film don’t shoot it in 3D. For it to work they would have had to use steadycams to smooth the motion out, and at that point it would no longer have been the type of film they wanted to make.’

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10 changes to the way sport is shot for 3D TV

It may have missed out on the World Cup but Sky has big plans for showing sport in 3D. The satellite king will be showing live football, rugby and cricket amongst others on its 3D channel this year.

January witnessed the first live broadcasts of Premier League football matches in 3D for punters at pubs across the UK. Recently Sky launched its 3D channel, currently broadcasting a showreel of 3D highlights plus the occasional live event such as the first cricket match to be shown in 3D on 8 July between England and Bangladesh.

For living room viewers the 3D channel (no 217 on the EPG) is currently available free to top tier subscribers. You do, of course, need a new generation 3DTV, but existing Sky+ HD boxes can be upgraded via a software update.

Here’s how Sky has changed the way it shoots sport for 3D viewing.

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We need more 3D content says Dixons boss, it’s coming counters Warner

3D TVs may flying off the shelves at the moment but the technology could run into trouble if the content issue is not addressed. That’s the warning from UK retail giant Dixons.
Speaking at the Futuresource Entertainment Seminar in London, DSG’s category director for consumer electronics Huw Crwys-Williams said: ‘For us, 3D TVs are currently selling really well. The only issue we currently have is with supply shortages. However 3D content will become an issue if we don’t address this by the end of the year.’

Cloudy content
The content situation for 3D is currently unclear. Sky is currently running only a showreel preview channel. A domestic service is not expected until October at the earliest. 3D Blu-rays are invisible at retail. The only discs are those offered as promotional items with set and disc purchases. Hardware giants Panasonic and Samsung have been buying title exclusivity, precluding them from stores in the process.

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Networks Next Up on 3D TV Experience

It’s not really a surprise, but at an event at a Best Buy store in New York City this morning, Panasonic and Best Buy showed off the first customers actually buying a combination of a large-screen 3D set, 3D glasses, and a 3D Blu-ray player.

It was part of Panasonic’s official launch of its 3D plasma line-up, which included some new information on content from DirectTV and Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment.

The first customers, Brad and Ashley, spent a total of $3,157.33 (including tax) for their 3D products. List price of the VT20 50-inch plasma set is just under $2,500, including one pair of 3D glasses, and the BDT300 Blu-ray player is just under $400. Additional pairs of glasses cost $150 each. Panasonic says that 54-, 58-, and 65-inch plasma sets should be available soon, with pricing to be announced.

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